Shoot The Moon
by IceBlueWings
Summary: GaLe. OOC. AU. Mature. She was the only one who approached him as a child. He admired her. But times change, and seeing her now, he wondered what happened all these years in her life.
1. That Time, Once Again

**Warning: Mature themes, characters are also out of character, and this is set in a realistic world (as in, not Fairy Tail).**

* * *

**1. That Time, Once Again**

He always remembered the reason why he kept himself away from people. It didn't turn out to be voluntary at first; he tried to appear pleasant and he tried to make friends with others, but his efforts did not reach the people around him. All they knew was that he looked frightening. He looked rough and mean, so they kept away from him. He had trouble making friends when he was in kindergarten, because his classmates were frightened of his face, and their parents warned them not to mix with mean people.

It was almost inevitable that he fit into their assumed personality of him. Based on his appearance, everyone thought he was a deviant child. There was only one person who approached him without any fear when he was around ten years old. She saved him from a group of delinquents a few years older than him.

He thought she was strange. No one ever bothered to look at him pleasantly like she did. He knew she was older than him, perhaps about five years older.

"What is your name?" She asked him brightly.

"Gajeel Redfox." He answered, scratching his short, messy black hair a little shyly.

"Alright, Gajeel. I'm Levy. Nice to meet you." She said smugly, patting his head.

He admired this girl who showed no hesitation in becoming his friend.

But they only knew each other for three days before she had to leave with her family to another town, and he returned to his lonely lifestyle.

* * *

She never lacked love, but she was greedy for it.

A pleased sigh escaped her lips.

He kissed the soft skin of her neck and continued his kisses all over her, and she responded with pleased sighs and moans. His kisses felt as if they were filled with love. She knew she would be lying to herself if she ever thought he loved her, but she was fine with that kind of lie.

"You're beautiful," He whispered to her as he hovered over her in her bed, and she smiled. He kissed her neck, biting her soft skin lightly before burying himself into her, and she moaned.

All his words were lies, because when she awoke the next morning, he was gone without a sound and without a message. His name slipped her mind. She knew he didn't remember her name as well. At least she felt loved for a brief moment in her life—as fake as it was.

She feared losing love, and she feared having so little of it. She wanted a lot, and a lot, and a lot of love.

But she knew how hard love can betray. She wanted love that was fleeting but in abundance.

No attachments. That was all she wanted.

* * *

Gajeel placed his bags down as he searched for his keys to his new home. "Tch," He sighed irritatedly as he rummaged for the keys he received from his foster parent. "Stupid old man," He muttered aloud as he searched for the keys in the pockets of his bag. "I didn't need this whole 'try a new place' thing." He said. "Damn it, where did I put those keys?" He gritted his teeth. And then he heard a chuckle. He turned to look at a petite woman who looked at him with amusement.

She zipped up her coat before walking towards him and tapping on a small box that was attached to the wall next to door. "We use cards here, not keys. Flash your card here, and you'll open the door." She said. "Nice to meet you, neighbour." She said as she walked off.

He stared at her back until she disappeared at the corner of the hallway.

"Levy." He whispered.

Levy walked out of the apartment building and walked towards her office. She had worked as a writer for a fashion magazine for just a year, and she was satisfied. Her true objective was to become an editor for a magazine, and she hoped she could prove it as fast as she could. She remembered the face of the man she slept with two nights ago. He was just a guy she met in one of the company parties recently, and he wasn't working in the same magazine as her. But he showered her with compliments and flattered her.

Was love as shallow as that?

She didn't care. It took around fifteen minutes for her to reach the building where she worked. And then she remembered the new neighbour. He looked familiar, but she wondered where she ever met such a guy before. She brushed her bangs to the side. She used to hold her bangs up with a bandana, but as she grew older, she stopped that style.

"Good morning, Levy!" She heard the two guys at reception greet her. She smiled back at them.

"Good morning, Jet, Droy! Have a pleasant day!" She said as she walked towards the elevator.

She stepped into the elevator and kept a smile on her face until the doors closed. She dropped the smile, sighing softly.

* * *

Gajeel sat passively in the lecture hall of his university, sitting near the door and away from everyone. Not that he had to sit there to be away from everyone; everyone naturally stayed away from a guy who looked like him. He looked at his pen, pressing the button of the pen consistently as he waited for the lecture to start.

"Hey, that sounds a little annoying. Could you stop it?" A pink haired guy asked him a little irritatedly from below him.

Gajeel raised an eyebrow at him, and then snickered. "No." He said.

The pink haired guy stood up. "Huh? You wanna fight?" He asked.

"Natsu!" A blonde girl said, pushing him down on his seat. "Sorry, this guy's a little hot tempered. I'm Lucy, this is Natsu. Nice to meet you." Lucy said with a smile.

"Hm. Yeah." Gajeel said, looking away. Lucy frowned slightly at his lack of friendliness, when the lecturer entered the hall and started the class.

Gajeel made a point to see whether his neighbour was really Levy, and whether she was the same one he was friends with as a child.

* * *

She returns home at around nine at night, and bumps into Gajeel who returns with a bag full of food. "Ah, the new neighbour." She said with a smile. He raised an eyebrow. She smiled so widely, so…forcedly. "You're pretty big. How old are you?" She asked.

"…Nineteen." He said.

"Oh. I expected you to be around twenty-something." She said. She shivered. "Let's go inside, it's cold." She said, and he followed. They went into the lift together. "My name's Levy." She said.

He nearly would have said he knew that, but he didn't want to sound like a creep. Would she remember if he said his name? "…Gajeel Redfox."

She looked at him, and he returned her gaze. It seemed as though they stared into each other's eyes for minutes, although it was just a second or two. The elevator stopped, and Levy stepped out first. She took her purse and got her house card.

"U-Um," She stopped upon hearing his voice. She looked at him. "No, it's nothing. Sorry to trouble you." He said.

She smiled. "Okay. Have a good night," She said as she flashed her card and walked into her home. He flashed his card and stepped into his home.

* * *

Upon entering the bedroom, Levy dropped her bag to the floor, and then her coat, and then dropped herself onto her bed. She contemplated on whether she should eat or go straight to sleep. She buried her face into her pillow. Her curtains were left open, and the night light illuminated her room.

"Gajeel Redfox." She said aloud, remembering his face. Black hair, red eyes, a somewhat menacing face—he seemed familiar. She rolled to her back, facing the ceiling. "Sounds so familiar." She mumbled. She shimmied out of her pants and kicked it off her bed before pulling off her shirt, and she snuggled into the covers of her bed and drifted off to sleep.

Gajeel woke up at nine in the morning, yawning as he brushed his teeth. He had a piece of toast before grabbing the trash and opening the door of his home to head downstairs to the garbage collection area when he heard a muffled scream from Levy's home. He stopped, contemplating on whether he should react or not. He stood still, wearing a plain white shirt, sweatpants and slippers. The door of her home opened and she jumped out, her hair in a slight mess as she pulled her coat over her hastily and wore her boots in a hurry. She nearly tripped, and he nearly darted forward to catch her, although she regained her balance quickly.

"Ah." She looked at Gajeel. "Good morning, Gajeel." She beamed a forced smile again. He kept his frown hidden. "Sorry, I'm late for work. See you later!" She said as she ran towards the elevator.

He wondered if he had ever seen someone so pretty even when she's being so flustered.

* * *

Gajeel walked towards the school cafeteria to grab lunch. He couldn't doubt that it was the same Levy he met all those years ago. What a coincidence, to have her as a neighbour. And she is older than him, though he wasn't sure by how many years. It was so long ago since they first met; of course she wouldn't remember him.

"Oi, Gajeel." He heard Natsu call him. Gajeel looked at the pink haired classmate who was walking towards him. "You're Gajeel Redfox, right?" He asked. Gajeel nodded. "I'm Natsu Dragneel, I remember my dad talking about yours. Your dad's Metalicana, right?" He asked.

Gajeel froze. "You know Metalicana?" He asked.

Natsu shook his head. "Not personally. I remember Igneel talking about him once or twice." Natsu said. "From the looks of it, you don't know where Metalicana is, huh? I don't know where Igneel is too."

Gajeel raised an eyebrow at Natsu. "Do you know Makarov?" Gajeel asked.

Natsu laughed. "That old geezer sent me here!" He said. "Said it was for my own good." He shrugged.

Gajeel rolled his eyes. The old man probably sent a lot of kids to this school. "By the way, Gajeel, wanna eat lunch with me?" Natsu asked with a grin.

He looked at the pink haired guy for a moment and shrugged as he followed his new friend to a place to eat.

* * *

Gajeel heard a hard thump against his door. He walked towards the door and opened it, only to find a man holding Levy in his arms. The man chuckled. "Sorry about that," He said as he rummaged in her pockets for her house card.

Levy, red in the face, saw Gajeel. "Hi, Gajeel." She slurred. She was drunk. She giggled as she hugged the man with her. He felt uneasy. "Gajeel, you should head to sleep," She giggled again. "And—"

"Hey, hey." The man stopped her. "Don't concentrate on him, concentrate on me." He said.

Levy kissed the man on his neck as she was brought into her home. The door closed softly, and Gajeel looked at the phone on the floor before him. He picked it up, and heard faint sounds of their love-making not long after.

He walked back into his home and the door closed gently. He swallowed an unpleasant lump in his throat, and realized that people change over the course of time.

But he knew he was jealous of that man who touched her so deeply. He went to sleep, trying to block out the sounds of her voice.

* * *

The doorbell rang and aroused him from his sleep. He rubbed his eyes groggily, walking towards the door sleepily and opening it. Levy stood there in a pair of sweatpants and shirt, looking slightly sheepish until she noticed his shirtless, muscled torso. She eyed him for a second until he leaned on the doorway, breaking her line of sight. She blushed, clearing her throat meekly. "U-Um, good morning," She said with a small chuckle. "I-I was just wondering if you saw my phone…? I might have dropped it somewhere outside…last night." She said.

Gajeel looked down at the petite woman, who smiled up at him sheepishly. "Doesn't your boyfriend have it?" He asked.

"Oh, that guy?" She asked, and he raised an eyebrow. "O-Oh, um, no, he doesn't." She said, averting her gaze as she scratched her cheek.

"Right," Gajeel said, realizing that it was just a guy, not her boyfriend. He felt a little relieved. "Come in, or stay outside, if you want." He said before stepping back inside his home. She decided to step inside, although she stayed at the entrance. She glanced around the living room, noticing that it was pretty much empty, although he had some rubbish piling up. It didn't seem like he cooked much by seeing the rubbish that he left on the table.

He returned not long after, handing her phone. "So you did have it," She said. "Why'd you ask me that question then?" She asked.

Gajeel opened the door for her. "Because I wanted to know who that guy was." He said.

Levy walked out of his home. "W-Well…you shouldn't pry into someone's personal life, thank you very much." She said.

He shrugged. "You were pretty loud last night." He snickered when her face turned a bright red. "It was hard to sleep." There was a pause. "Why aren't you going out with him?" He asked.

"Why should I?" She asked, and he heard a slightly bitter tone in her question. "I can get what I want without dating someone." She mumbled as she walked back inside her home.

He wished he lied to her about having her phone. And then he wondered what on earth happened in the past few years of her life.

* * *

**Notes:**

Yes, new story. I have to warn that this is not going be consistently updated, and it'll take time until the next chapter is posted. So I apologize in advance. And I think you have to be pretty open-minded to read this story-it is for mature readers, and will have mature themes. I also understand if you don't like this story. I'm just trying this story, it's different from what I usually write.


	2. My, My, My

**2. My, My, My.**

After what happened that day, Gajeel hasn't seen Levy for the past two weeks. He must have missed her all the time, but he had a feeling she was avoiding him. Maybe he was avoiding her as well, since he did not know what he would have said if he ever met her again.

But things like these should often be left to chance, he thought to himself.

So when he returned home at around nine in the night after a time spent with Natsu, Lucy, Erza, and Gray (which he wasn't sure if he enjoyed it because he only remembered getting into arguments with Natsu and Gray), he spotted Levy coming out of the elevator in her black coat and a pair of black heels that made her a little bit taller, but not as tall as him. He figured she was going out to a party, since she seemed to be wearing make-up as well.

She did not notice him as she passed by him…or maybe she chose not to notice him. Even so, he did not want to be kept hidden from her.

"Be careful," He blurted out, and she stopped. She turned her face to look at him. "…It's pretty late." He added.

She gave a small smile. "I don't want to hear that from a scary looking guy like you." She said jokingly. "I'm kidding, you don't look scary. You look better than all those sweet looking guys out there." She said, waving and leaving the apartment building.

* * *

"You're here!" A female coworker said. Levy grinned as she sat down. "We were waiting! Come on, get a drink."

Even though she came to the FT Bar, she wasn't in the mood for partying. In fact, she was bothered by what transpired two weeks ago. It was even more frustrating to be concerned over Gajeel's impression on her.

Not to mention, he's five years younger than her!

"Hey, I'm…" A male man introduced himself, leaning closer to her. Levy wasn't paying attention. After a short, meaningless conversation, she stood up and walked towards the bartender.

Or rather, barmaid.

"Mirajane, it's been a while." Levy said with a smile as her old friend smiled pleasantly at her. "Could I just have a light drink?"

Mirajane gave her a drink. "You know, you don't have to force yourself to be at these things if you don't want to. Appearance matters, but it's not everything."

Levy shrugged. "I know. I guess I could go home…" She said, looking at her drink. "Someone recently moved into the unit next to mine." She said.

"Oh? And…?" Mirajane asked curiously.

"He's nineteen. A university kid. But he looks cool. He looks familiar, but I can't remember where I've met him." Levy said.

"Hm…" Mirajane said, watching the blue haired girl sipping her drink. She wasn't sure what Levy had in mind. "Think things through, Levy."

Levy looked at the translucent drink she held in her hand. "I wasn't even…" She finished her drink. "I'm leaving." She said as she paid the money for her drink, and left the bar. Mirajane watched the woman leave, concerned and uncertain.

* * *

It was about an hour or two after she left when he heard his doorbell ring. He got up from his desk and opened the door to see the petite woman looking at her feet, as though she was a girl who had done wrong. "U-Um," She looked up at him and smiled. "I decided to come back early! Are you free? Maybe we could get to know each other, being neighbours and all that." She said.

He felt a little suspicious about her sudden appearance, and her sudden willingness to talk to him when they haven't seen each other since that day. But maybe he was thinking too much about it. "Sure." He said, letting her in. Levy noticed that he had cleaned his place.

"Have you eaten dinner? I brought some food. And drinks, well, the drinks are beer, but you can help yourself to them." She rambled as she set the things she brought onto his coffee table, taking a seat on the floor instead of the couch. "I won't stay long, I know you're busy."

Gajeel sat beside her as she pulled open the can tab of a beer and took a sip. "No, you can stay as long as you want." He said, knowing well that he knew this step might lead to something more. Would it be troublesome? Would it be welcomed? However the future turned out to be, he didn't care. He cared more for the present. He saw her younger self while he looked at her present self. They were so different, but somewhere in her, she had to be the same. He found it disappointing that she doesn't remember him. Then again, the time they spent together was short—perhaps even the memories of it didn't last. Perhaps it shouldn't have lasted. But to him, Levy was an important person at that time.

She sighed in satisfaction as she took a swig of beer. "Here," She said, holding out packed food towards him. He took it wordlessly, and she raised an eyebrow. "Unless you're not hungry, that's fine too." She said, opening her own packed food, taking her chopsticks and started to eat.

He looked at her and then at the food she gave him. He started eating as well. "You still eat well." He said.

She looked at him and laughed. "What do you mean by that?"

Gajeel averted his gaze. "N-No, I mean, you know, when you live alone you tend to eat less." He said.

"I don't think so," She said after swallowing her food. "But that does happen. I don't eat well, to be honest. I don't know how to cook so I eat outside, but I hate eating alone and I'm lazy to get out to buy food. So I stay at home and skip meals." She said. "And you?"

He expected that, so he didn't react much. "I can cook, but cooking became a chore, so I eat things that could be microwaveable. I'm not too lazy to get out and buy something to eat, though." He said.

Levy perked up. "Really? Then cook something for me next time! It's a win-win situation. We'll eat healthier, cheaper food, and we'll be eating it together." She said.

Gajeel froze. This is…a rather fast pace of friendship they were getting into. Not that he minded. "But…I'm not that great of a cook." He said.

She chuckled and waved a hand dismissively. "That's not the point," She said. Though she smiled, her expression turned slightly sad. "The point is we're not alone."

He looked at her. "…Why?" He asked. "Why is being with someone so important?"

She sipped her beer. "Because when I'm alone I feel forgotten. When I'm alone someone else isn't. I don't want to be alone. Why do I have to be alone?" She asked. "Why do people leave without notice, and why do they leave me?"

Silence followed as Gajeel wondered if he should answer that question. Even if he wanted to, he didn't know what the right answer was. "I won't leave." He said impulsively. His cheeks warmed from embarrassment. It wasn't his sudden declaration that embarrassed him; it was the lack of thought of his declaration that embarrassed him. He sounded naïve.

And she saw through him. "Thanks." She said, and she resumed eating. He gripped his chopsticks tightly as he finished his food.

Who was he to say such words, when he had been alone for most of his life?

Levy gathered the rubbish into the plastic bag. "I guess we should call it a night." She said as she stood up. "It's getting late anyway."

He grabbed her arm, startling her. "Why are you leaving?" He asked.

The smile upon her face would have seemed scary, if not for the fact that he knew what he was offering her. She left the bag of rubbish and leaned down towards him, their noses almost touching. "That's dangerous, you know." She said as she placed her hand on his chest, moving downwards.

It could have gone further, but it didn't.

* * *

She was full of contradictions.

"I wanted to scare him a little, that's all." Levy said as she looked at Mirajane sheepishly. The barmaid was told of what happened the night before. Mirajane scolded Levy over what she did. "He didn't seem very affected by it, though. He knew what he was doing."

"Clarify me on this," The young barmaid said, "You did not sleep with him, am I correct?"

"No, Mirajane. I did not. He was too…he's too nice." Levy said with a slight grumble. "I don't want to make him come over to the dark side."

Mirajane scoffed. "So, you're going to keep him at a distance because he's too nice?"

"I'm masochistic, Mira. Didn't you know that?" Levy grinned.

"You're selfish too, don't forget that." Mirajane said.

Levy stood up. "I'm going."

Mirajane sighed as she watched Levy leave.

* * *

He was afraid of losing important things.

Gajeel always wore a silver necklace with a sphere shaped pendant. That was the only thing he had left ever since Metalicana disappeared when he was seven years old. He grew up in several homes, although the longest was Makarov's. After taking a shower, he contemplated on cooking something. Would it please her if he cooked a simple dish? Would she come over again with a bright expression, adorably asking him to try making a certain dish?

"Oi, Gajeel. The least you could do is to serve us drinks." Natsu said, breaking Gajeel's thoughts. The dark haired man glared at Natsu.

Gajeel looked away uncaringly, even though Natsu and Lucy were currently in his home. "I don't have anything but water, so you guys can help yourselves to that."

"What?!" Natsu burst out comically, to which Lucy gave a slap across his head to calm him.

The blonde haired girl stood up. "Well, maybe I should get us some food and drinks, while you can teach Natsu all the really, _really_ simple stuff we learned today." She said, emphasizing on her words and glaring at Natsu for his lack of concentration in class. As Lucy opened the door and stepped outside, she bumped into a blue haired woman. Lucy stumbled back while Levy gave a soft yelp, falling backwards and onto her behind.

"Holy crap," Levy said, looking up at Lucy. "You have massive…" She faltered, realizing that she was in front of Gajeel's home. Gajeel appeared straight after, looking at Levy in surprise. He pulled the older woman up on her feet. Levy cleared her throat and gave a rigid smile. "Oh! I'm sorry, are you Gajeel's _girlfriend_? Gosh, I didn't know Gajeel had such a _beautiful girlfriend_. And so...endowed." Levy gave a small laugh. "Oh God, how rude of me to say this to a stranger! Well, I hope you have a great time here, _Gajeel's girlfriend_! Go on and do whatever you want to do; don't mind me!" She laughed shrilly as she flashed her card and opened the door, slipping into her house quickly and closing the door with a slam.

Lucy and Gajeel stared at Levy's door, startled and dazed. Everything happened in an instant. Levy talked so fast that they didn't have the chance to interrupt. "Fuck." Gajeel cursed. Lucy grimaced. "She misunderstood everything." He groaned.

"Obviously," Lucy said. "Um…is she important to you? I could clear things up." She said, adding in a mumble that she didn't ask to be 'so endowed'.

"What happened?" Natsu asked, and the other two looked at him with frowns. "I was in the toilet." He said defensively.

Ignoring Natsu, Gajeel looked at Lucy. "It's fine. I'll talk to her myself. She's…um, she's not important," He paused for a second before adding, "In that way."

Lucy smirked. "Right…if you say so. I'll buy us the food and drinks then." She said, walking off.

"So…are you gonna tell me what happened?" Natsu asked.

"No, we are going to study." Gajeel said, pushing Natsu in and shutting the door.

* * *

Gajeel realized it was even more difficult to talk to Levy after the incident with Lucy. It's been days since then. Surprisingly, they haven't met very often—perhaps Levy was trying to avoid him once again—and whenever they did bump into each other, Levy ran off. He could have caught her easily, he knew he could, but her reluctance to talk to him made him stay still.

"Why do you just stand there and do nothing about it?!" Lucy asked him in frustration.

"Why am I even talking to you about this?" He asked indifferently.

"It's obviously because I am the only one who knows about this." Lucy said smugly, as though she had uncovered a huge secret. "Just do something." She said.

He looked elsewhere, ending the conversation. Lucy rolled her eyes and paid her attention to Natsu, who was gobbling up food. It's been a month or two since Gajeel started to have Natsu and Lucy as his friends, and they already knew he wasn't the kind who talked much about himself or anything at all. He was aloof, but he was also nice.

And maybe that would be his downfall.

* * *

Levy sighed. Her desk was cluttered with papers, filled with information on a few articles she had to write. She also had to think of what pictures to add in. It was tedious, but it was a job she enjoyed. She contemplated on grabbing a meal, but decided against it, having no appetite. Honestly, she just felt unwell, but she had to finish this. She's been busy with this for days, and she clearly hasn't been taking care of herself since this project.

_I'll be fine if I take some rest_, she thought when she heard her doorbell. She nearly tripped on a pile of books as she walked towards the door. Her legs felt heavy and her mind was a little dizzy. She opened the door and met Gajeel. She blinked. "I'm sorry," She started, when she was shown his palm as a sign to stop. "But—"

"It won't take long," He said quickly. "I just wanted to tell you that Lucy—the girl you saw the other day—is not my girlfriend. You've misunderstood. She's just a friend." He said.

"Oh." Levy said, trying to ignore the sudden headache she was getting. "I…see."

"Yeah," He said, scratching his head awkwardly. "Well, then I'll leave you to whatever you've been doing." He said, looking slightly apologetic.

She nodded, and he raised an eyebrow. There was something off about her. She gave a small smile. "That's…well, um," She gave a small laugh. "It's not really my business, but thanks for the information." She said.

Gajeel felt like slapping his forehead. Of course she did not have such a significant reason to know what's been going on in his personal life. "Just saying." He said.

She nodded again. "I'm sorry, I'm not feeling well. We'll talk again another day." She said, letting go of the doorknob before collapsing at the entrance. Gajeel stopped the door from closing and immediately picked her up, eyes wide and concerned.

"Levy!" He called, and then flipped open his phone. With trembling fingers, he called the ambulance.

* * *

_"Mama," Levy said, entering her parents' bedroom with a small tray in her hands, a mug of tea on top of the tray. "I brought you te—"_

_She dropped the tray, the mug breaking and the tea splashing on the floor._

_She stared at her mother. Her throat dried as her mouth gaped open at the scene before her._

_Hanging from the ceiling was her mother, her body limp and lifeless. Levy stared at every part of her mother, and everything in the room. The room was dark, yet everything was calm. For a long time, Levy simply stood before her mother, the both of them frozen and blank._

_Finally, the first coherent thought that ran across Levy's mind was—_

**_This is love._**

_And Levy turned around and ran away from the love that overwhelmed and engulfed her mother, so much so that her mother chose to turn it to envy._

* * *

**Note: **I wanted to update this first before updating Captive Heart, so don't worry (to those who are reading this and Captive Heart), I have not abandoned Captive Heart. But I'm going to stress again that I don't have a lot of time at the moment to write these stories as much as I want to, so bear with me. **I can't guarantee I will update them consistently and at a fast/moderately fast pace.** I'm sorry about that (but priorities, you know? I have school). And please don't tell me what I should do. I know what I have to do.


End file.
